Alexandria National Cemetery is a
United States National Cemetery located in the city of
Pineville, in
Rapides Parish, Louisiana
Rapides Parish () (french: Paroisse des Rapides) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2010 census, the population was 131,613. The parish seat is Alexandria, which developed along the Red River of the South. ''Rapides ...
. It occupies approximately , and is site to over 10,000 interments as of the end of 2020.
History
In 1867, an plot was appropriated from a local resident to establish the Alexandria National Cemetery. It was originally intended as a place to bury
Union soldiers who died in the area during the
Civil War, but later, remains from Mount Pleasant,
Cheneyville,
Yellow Bayou, and
Fort Brown,
Texas, were re-interred in Alexandria. Of approximately 1378 Civil War burials, 507 are known and 871 are unknown.
Alexandria National Cemetery was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
Notable burials
*
Sputnik Monroe
Roscoe Monroe Brumbaugh (born Rosco Monroe Merrick; December 18, 1928 – November 3, 2006) better known by his ring name Sputnik Monroe, was an American professional wrestler and civil rights activist. He was a headliner in many territories, and ...
(1928–2006), professional wrestler
* US Representative
Gillis William Long (1923–1985)
* Major
Jacob Brown (1778–1846), for whom
Fort Brown, Texas
Fort Brown (originally Fort Texas) was a military post of the United States Army in Cameron County, Texas, during the latter half of the 19th century and the early part of the 20th century. Established in 1846, it was the first US Army military ...
is named
*
John J. Williams (American Civil War)
John Jefferson Williams (1843 – May 13, 1865) was a Union (American Civil War), Union soldier and private in Company B the 34th Regiment Indiana Infantry. He was killed at the Battle of Palmito Ranch, the last land battle of the American Civil ...
(1843–1865), the last soldier killed in the
American Civil War
* Civil War Union Army Captain
Ira W. Claflin (1834–1867)
* There are fifty-seven
Buffalo Soldiers interred at the Alexandria National Cemetery
* There are 5 German P.O.W.’s buried at The Alexandria National Cemetery
New interments
The cemetery is closed to new interments. Exceptions to this include subsequent interments for veterans or eligible family members in an existing gravesite. Cemetery policy allows for first-come, first-served waitlist to eligible veterans if burial space becomes available due to a canceled reservation or when a disinterment has been completed.
See also
*
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
References
External links
National Cemetery AdministrationAlexandria National Cemetery in Louisiana*
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{{Registered Historic Places
Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Louisiana
United States national cemeteries
Pineville, Louisiana
Protected areas of Rapides Parish, Louisiana
Historic American Landscapes Survey in Louisiana
National Register of Historic Places in Rapides Parish, Louisiana